Guest Post: I Love You, New York

My love for the West Coast always has and always will flow deep through my veins. However, transplanting myself to Philadelphia after twenty two years in the Pacific Northwest was equally one of the most terrifying and most exhilarating moments in my life. I’ve been missing my old, rainy stomping grounds in Portland and Seattle, but luckily a little bit of home made his way across the country for me this past week. I hadn’t let myself truly embrace the East Coast yet – distracted by my longing for home – but together my favorite person and I explored everything that makes the East Coast its own world. After traveling through seven states in less time than it takes to drive through California, I have a greater appreciation for the East Coast. Philadelphia is where we go to see history at present. Washington, D.C. is a place to reflect on where we’ve been and who we’ve become. New York City is a temptress that will test our limits and realize our passions. It’s funny… I’ve heard time and time again that people come to Manhattan to find love. I don’t think many realize that there are so many things – not just people – to fall in love with. Thankfully, that’s what I did this past weekend. I’m already in love with my best friend, so this weekend I fell in love alongside him. We didn’t fall in love with each other in the city, but we fell in love with the city together.

This just made me very, very, very homesick for my apartment in Brooklyn. It really is a city that makes you fall in love with its hidden secrets, its shortcomings, and even yourself, and it shaped me in a way that I’ll never regret.